Corchorus capsularis Linnaeus and C. olitorius Linnaeus have been domesticated for production of bast fibers and are the commercially important cultivated species. Corchorus aestuans Linnaeus also is used and cultivated for fiber production, although the fibers are weaker than those of the others. Fibers of other species (for example, C. tridens Linnaeus) also are used locally. Corchorus leaves (C. capsularis in China and Japan; C. olitorius in southern Asia, the Middle East, and northern Africa) are commonly eaten as leafy vegetables and in stews. Within C. olitorius, the fiber types and the vegetable types comprise two separate cultivar groups, the former with a little-branched habit.

Generic boundaries among the species of Corchorus probably will be modified. The monospecific Oceanopapaver Guillaumin is part of a clade with the endemic Malagasy genus Pseudocorchorus Capuron and species of Corchorus with stellate vestiture (C. Tirel et al. 1996; B. A. Whitlock et al. 2003).